%% Image selected per Image Pickin' thread: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1452266899092104700%% Please do not change or remove without starting a new thread.%%[[quoteright:350:[[VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/valkchron_ew2_2.jpg]]]][[caption-width-right:350:[[SarcasmMode Totally not]] based on UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.]]

This trope deals with a story that features some sort of analogue of a real-world historical conflict in a fantasy or science fiction context in a different world from ours. This is especially popular in Japan, since it allows them to tell stories utilizing the era of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII without actively mentioning the war.

See also RecycledInSpace, FantasyCounterpartCulture, and DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything. Supertrope to SpaceColdWar. Compare and contrast WeirdHistoricalWar in that it depicts RealLife historical war, but with added fantastical elements.

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!!Examples

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[[folder:Anime and Manga]]* It's only seen through flashback, but the war between Thracia and Persia in ''Manga/{{Pluto}}'' is heavily based on the Iraq War (with robots). The United States of Thracia accuses the Middle East nation of Persia of making Robots of Mass Destruction, but before other countries can complete their investigation into whether it's true, Thracia sends troops in and starts a horrific, wasteful war that devastates the country. And this is all just a ploy to make Thracia the world's main superpower.* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', the New Fishman Pirates threaten the people of Fishman Island to commit Fumi-e on the late Queen Otohime's image, to shed out their loyalty to Queen Otohime (who has the exact opposite view of the BigBad Hody Jones') which is a reference on feudal Japan's practice of purging Christians (they have their people step on a Christian imagery to prove that they're not Christian).* In ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'', the persecution of the Ishvallan people is said to be a parallel to the Japanese treatment of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ainu_people Ainu]]. The author was familiar with this conflict due to growing up in Hokkaido, where most of the Ainu people live.** There's another parallel that Western eyes will see even if they're unaware of its true inspiration: the Nazis' treatment of the Jews, Amestris being a militaristic European-like military dictatorship--led by a Fuhrer, no less--who committed genocide against a religious minority of monotheists. Though the Ishvallans share more in common with Middle Eastern Muslims than Jews, or any of the other groups the Nazis targetted.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]* ''FanFic/RacerAndTheGeek'' has one of the main characters a ShellShockedVeteran of a war in "Afgneighistan".* The titular conflict of ''FanFic/TheDilgarWar'' presents more than a few similarities to UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.* In ''FanFic/OrderInChaos'' the war is practically the Western Front of UsefulNotes/WorldWarI [[RecycledInSpace IN SPACE]].* ''Fanfic/DontSayGoodbyeFarewell'' makes a subtle reference to the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_off_Samar Battle of Samar]] with the naming of Kanril Eleya's task force as TF 34. [[spoiler:The sequence has them and Moabite ships drawn elsewhere while [[ApocalypseHow Fek-Day]] happens in the Moab system itself, leaving them unable to respond to help.]][[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]* InUniverse example in ''Film/{{Argo}}'': A group of American diplomats pretend to be a Canadian film crew to escape Iran. When questioned about the (fake) movie by the Revolutionary Guard at the airport, they describe the plot as the UsefulNotes/{{Iran}}ian Revolution [[RecycledInSpace as a space opera]].* ''StarWars''** The war against the Galactic Empire in the original trilogy has shades of WWII, with the Empire playing the part of Nazi Germany ("stormtrooper" is a direct translation of ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sturmabteilung Sturmabteilung]]''). Probably especially fitting given that a major influence on the series was old WWII-era serials: the operation against the Death Star in ''Film/ANewHope'' was inspired by ''Film/TheDamBusters'', which was about [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Chastise Operation Chastise]].** The prequel trilogy, although a bit more low-key, draws on aspects of the American Civil War, with the antagonists' side being called a "Confederacy", which utilizes slave labor and is mostly rebelling for economic reasons. The character of Senator/Chancellor/Emperor Sheev Palpatine also draws on UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler's rise to power through democratic means before being granted absolute power by his government in a crisis.** The sequel trilogy seems to draw more on modern day asymmetrical conflicts with Iran, Syria, or North Korea (the First Order draws especially on imagery of the latter, with a "Supreme Leader" and a heavily indoctrinated military).* ''Film/{{Avatar}}'' is about the American military intervening in another planet because they want a valuable energy source (you know, like oil) facing resistance from a group of religiously motivated natives who consider the area that the Americans want "holy land", whilst at the same time most of the soldiers and especially their leaders, can't understand why this people (that some of they consider backwards and superstitious) are not happy with receiving their medicines and gadgets as a fair trade for their resource. Sounds like most of the Middle Eastern wars, but most notably the Iraqi War. It also resembles the Indian Wars in the US.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]* OlderThanRadio: In ''Literature/TheBegumsMillions'' by Creator/JulesVerne, two competing cities are expies for France and Germany. Verne made no bones on where his sympathies were.* Books by Creator/HarryTurtledove:** ''Literature/WarBetweenTheProvinces'' sets UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar in a fantasy environment.** The ''Literature/DarknessSeries'' is about a fantasy version of WWII. With MagicMissile shooting "sticks" as guns, dragons as aircraft, behemoths for tanks, leviathans for submarines, earthquake-generating spells powered by HumanSacrifice in place of airstrikes, the America equivalent even develops a FantasticNuke.* The second duology of ''Literature/ArciaChronicles'' is a {{fantasy}} retelling of the UsefulNotes/WarsOfTheRoses, dubbed "War of the Daffodils".* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' is based heavily on various Scottish and English internal wars of the Middle Ages.** The names of the FeudingFamilies Stark and Lannister (York and Lancaster) are less than subtle clues to inspiration from the Wars of the Roses. Even more directly, brief mentions are made of the Red and Green "Apple" Fossoways, who appear to have their own squabbles over titles and are two branches of a house. The symbol of House Tyrell, one of the major power players in the series, is depicted in the TV adaptation ''Series/GameOfThrones'' as a dead ringer for the Tudor double rose.** The civil war between Aegon and Rhaenyra, is very similar - except for the dragons, of course - to the conflict between Stephen of Blois and Empress Matilda, cousins who vied over the English throne in the 12th century. Aegon is even persuaded to take the throne by his wife and mother, much as Stephen was. The Purple Wedding was also inspired by the death of Eustace (Stephen de Blois' son) at the the end of the Anarchy. Like the result of the Anarchy, Rhaenyra's claim is vindicated by her son Aegon III.** Likewise, The Red Wedding is based on real-life violations of SacredHospitality such as the Glencoe Massacre and the Black Dinner.** Cersei's (who is also inspired by [[NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed Isabelle of France]]) convoluted FawltyTowersPlot to frame Margaery for adultery was inspired by the Tour de Nesle affair, where the daughters-in-law of King Philip the Fair allegedly committed adultery.** The Blackfyre Rebellion is a reworking of [[UsefulNotes/HanoverStuartWars the Jacobite Rebellion]].** Some aspects of the War of the Five Kings, namely the Brave Companions pillaging the countryside, the religious frenzy and the burning of whole villages as part of a terror campaign comes from UsefulNotes/TheHundredYearsWar. * ''{{Literature/Discworld}}'' has a few of these:** The historical wars between Ephebe and Tsort resemble the mythical Trojan War. In ''Discworld/{{Pyramids}}'', when there's a threat of the war re-erupting, both sides build wooden horses along the border.** ''Discworld/{{Jingo}}'' combines elements of UsefulNotes/{{the Gulf War}} (the enemy is the Arabian FantasyCounterpartCulture, it's mentioned that Ankh-Morpork (i.e. the West) actually sold the Klatchians their weapons for use in "[[DeadlyEuphemism pacifying]]" their own people, and jingoism leads to racism against Klatchian-Morporkians) and UsefulNotes/{{the Falklands War}} (the conflict is over an island that is of no real significance except that the other lot aren't getting their hands on it).** In the later novels, the terrorist actions of the fundamentalist "deep dwarfs" (who [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything cover themselves from head to foot]] because they consider it a sin to look on sunlight) are reminiscent of TheWarOnTerror.* The Nilfgaard Empire's conquest of the Aedirn Kingdom in ''Franchise/TheWitcher'' series, is intended by author Creator/AndrzejSapkowski as a parallel to the Nazi invasion of Poland that led to UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Nilfgaard itself is [[ANaziByAnyOtherName a totalitarian state with visions of world domination and disdain for any nation it regards as less civilised]], and tactics it employs against Aedirn include {{False Flag Operation}}s, Blitzkrieg raids deep into the heart of their territory (with cavalry instead of tanks), and forming pacts with Aedirn's old allies, who betray it in exchange for a share of the conquered lands. Ironically, the Polish Sapkowski's Czech fans reportedly tend to interpret the same events as the Nazis' annexation of the Sudetenland from Czechoslovakia, with Poland getting Silesia in the similar secret deal (both real situations were similar, so this is not surprising).* The ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' series draws a lot of inspiration for its setting and events from UsefulNotes/TheNapoleonicWars, but with the land battles ported to SpaceNavy battles. The comparison goes OffTheRails around book nine.* Creator/TanyaHuff admitted in the afterword of ''[[Literature/ConfederationOfValor Valor's Choice]]'' that she based the book's major battle on [[UsefulNotes/AngloZuluWar Rorke's Drift]]. The fight involves hordes of adolescent [[LizardFolk Silsviss]] (standing in for the Zulus) trying to kill a small force of Confederation Marines (standing in for the Brits) in a dug-in position, with the battle finally being won by the Marines because the Silsviss leader was [[KlingonPromotion killed by his second-in-command]], who then withdrew after offering a show of respect (mirroring the Zulus quitting the field).* Some claim that Creator/FredSaberhagen's ''Literature/{{Berserker}} Fury'' - where our heroes recover from the sneak attack on Port Diamond to win the battle of 50/50 - was somehow influenced by real UsefulNotes/WorldWarII events. Apart from all the places and ships being thesaurus equivalents, and the battle tactics being exactly those of the Battle of Midway, it's difficult to see why that is.* In ''Literature/SecondApocalypse'', the Holy War has very clear parallels to the Crusades, with the Inrithi as the Christians, the Fanim as the Muslims, and the holy city of Shimeh as Jerusalem.* Short story "Lynortis Reprise" from ''{{Literature/Kane}}'' series is set in a fantasy equivalent of World War I Western front - complete with trench warfare, (magical) poisonous gases and tragic fate of numerous young men crippled in combat.* ''Literature/{{RCN}}'': Creator/DavidDrake usually notes in the foreword to the book the sources of inspiration (normally 19th century naval battles).** Like [[Literature/HonorHarrington a certain other long-running space opera]], the novels are loosely based on the Napoleonic Wars, with the literary inspiration being the ''Literature/AubreyMaturin'' novels instead of ''Literature/HoratioHornblower''. The Republic of Cinnabar stands in for Britain (with bits of the Roman Republic thrown in), both good and bad (it's noted they favor dictatorships to democracies for their client states because they only have to control one guy, not the whole population), while the [[PeoplesRepublicOfTyranny Alliance of Free Stars]] stands in for Napoleonic France, with elements of Prussia and the Soviet Union. [[spoiler:Unlike the Napoleonic Wars, however, the Cinnabar-Alliance War ends in a negotiated peace after book seven, as both countries, by far the most powerful human states in TheVerse, were on the verge of complete economic collapse after roughly forty years of fighting and would probably take most of human civilization with them.]]** The foreword to ''When the Tide Rises'' states that the book's conflicts, both military and political, are based on [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Cochrane,_10th_Earl_of_Dundonald Lord Cochrane's]] memoirs from his time serving as commander of the Chilean Navy during its war of independence, and the major battle on the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lissa_(1811) 1811 Battle of Lissa]] (not to be confused with the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lissa_(1866) 1866 Battle of Lissa]], which Drake comments was [[RealityIsUnrealistic so farcical you couldn't use it as a basis for fiction]]: the Italians somehow forgot to load shells in their cannons and spent the entire battle shooting blanks).* ''Literature/AlexisCarew'':** Despite the ''Literature/HoratioHornblower'' [-InSpace-] stylings of the series, the main conflict between New London and Hanover is more reminiscent of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII than the UsefulNotes/NapoleonicWars, with culturally British and trade-oriented New London opposing the culturally German and militarily expansionist Republic of Hanover mostly by itself for an extended period, and trying to get friendly but militarily neutral powers into the war on their side.** The mutiny in ''Mutineer'' is based on the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Hermione_(1782) historical mutiny]] aboard HMS ''Hermione'', down to the name of the ship.** ''The Little Ships'' takes its name from [[spoiler:the evacuation of Dunkirk. New London lands an army on Giron in the Berry March and for a while nothing happens (the so-called "Sitzkrieg"). Then Hanover draws away the fleet and counter-lands a much larger army that begins to RapePillageAndBurn. Midshipman Artley marshals a small fleet of civilian ships to get the troops and as many civilians as can be carried back off of Giron (Dunkirk). The author furthers the homage by naming several of the civilian ships after real-life ones that took part in the operation.]]** In ''Privateer'', the Marchant Company galleon ''Hind'' attempts to navigate a dangerous passage into a system used as a pirate nest, runs aground on a dark matter shoal, and is [[VehicularTurnabout captured and put to use by the pirates]]. This mirrors the fate of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Philadelphia_(1799) USS Philadelphia]] during the Barbary Wars, [[spoiler:with Alexis playing the role of Stephen Decatur Jr. and destroying it after infiltrating the system.]]* ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'':** Shortly after the novel's original release, audiences began drawing parallels between it and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Creator/JRRTolkien disliked this interpretation strongly enough that subsequent releases included a foreword that discusses at length all the ways in which the War of the Ring is ''not'' like World War II.** On the flipside, the Battle of the Pelennor Fields in ''The Return of the King'' shows many similarities to the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Vienna 1683 Battle of Vienna]] between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire, a siege of a fortified city that ended in the Turks' rout by the largest cavalry charge in history, led by King Jan III Sobieski of Poland. Meanwhile, Tolkien himself in ''The History of the Lord of the Rings'' pointed to an account of the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains by the late Roman historian Jordanes, in which Theodoric, King of the Visigoths, was slain in a nevertheless tactically successful battle against the Huns, invaders from the East.* The annexation of Cadiz by the Commonwealth in ''Literature/AngelInTheWhirlwind'' is a very disparaging allegory to the American occupation of Iraq in the 2000s: a politically controversial long-running occupation of a neutral power begun for reasons of {{realpolitik}}, that has by now become mired in a bloody and expensive insurgency and is riven with corruption and incompetence on the part of the occupiers.* ''Literature/IntoTheHinterlands'' and its sequel ''Into the Maelstrom'' by Creator/DavidDrake and Creator/JohnLambshead is the wars of early America InSpace, with viewpoint character Allen Allenson standing in for UsefulNotes/GeorgeWashington in respectively the UsefulNotes/FrenchAndIndianWar (Brasilian colonies versus Terran soldiers and "Riders") and the UsefulNotes/AmericanRevolution (Brasilian colonies seeking independence from Brasilia).* ''Literature/TheFourHorsemenUniverse'': The ShortStory "Unto the Last--Stand Fast" is based on the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stand_of_the_Swiss_Guard Stand of the Swiss Guard]], with a group of 189 human mercenaries, outnumbered and outgunned, making a LastStand against an invader to allow local religious leaders sought for heresy to escape. The twist is that the story is also a WholePlotReference to Music/{{Sabaton}}'s song about the same incident, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9BupglHdtM "The Last Stand"]], with lyrics from the song quoted by the characters and even used as a TrustPassword.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]* ''Series/{{Firefly}}'' was partially inspired by journals of Confederate soldiers on the frontier from UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, and the Unification War and aftermath has its similarities (Alliance occupation troops in the series' present = Union occupation troops during Reconstruction, for instance). However the comparison isn't perfect, as the Independent Faction started out independent instead of trying to secede and failing, and while it's left vague exactly ''what'' freedoms the independents were fighting to protect,[[labelnote:*]][[AllThereInTheManual According to the RPG]] and Joss Whedon's notes on ''Film/{{Serenity}}'' they were fighting against Alliance annexation, period.[[/labelnote]] it pretty obviously [[SlaveryIsASpecialKindOfEvil wasn't the freedom to own slaves.]]* ''Series/{{Dinosaurs}}'': The two-parter "Nuts to War", filmed shortly after the first Gulf War, had the two-legged dinosaurs go to war with the four-leggers over pistachio nuts in "[[OperationBlank Operation We Are Right]]."* ''Series/GameOfThrones'': The War of Five Kings is loosely inspired by the UsefulNotes/WarsOfTheRoses, Aegon's Conquest has obvious parallels to the Norman Conquest of England and the historical period the dance of the dragons was clearly based on the English Anarchy of 1135-1154.* Late battles in ''Series/SpaceAboveAndBeyond'' are directly based on parts of the Pacific and Normandy campaigns in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, with the similarities directly called out in the episodes.** "Stardust" = a disinformation op in the leadup to D-Day. [[spoiler:Also referenced are the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_talker code talkers]], with the Marines using missives written in Navajo and attached to corpses to mislead the Chigs.]]** "Sugar Dirt" = Guadalcanal, with a landing force scoring an initial easy victory, then being abandoned to fend for themselves in the face of superior forces for months in favor of taking advantage of a more strategic position elsewhere (New Guinea in real life, the planet Ixion near the Chig homeworld in the episode). Complete with a VanityPlate dedicating the episode to Guadalcanal veterans.** Round Hammer itself is inspired by the planned invasion of the Japanese home islands. [[spoiler:But unlike the real one that never happened because the Japanese surrendered after the American nuclear attacks, Round Hammer is called off in the finale because the Wild Cards screw up and give away the battle plan to the Chigs,[[note]]They meet an unarmored Chig while scouting a moon of the Chig homeworld and, not knowing what unarmored Chigs look like, mistake him for a different alien species and tell him about the planned assault to save his life. He is apparently a guardian of a Chig breeding ground and tells his government about the invasion.[[/note]] who offer to open peace negotiations instead of taking advantage. The negotiations go badly awry and the war restarts, but the UN has lost the initiative.]]* ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'':** The Occupation of Bajor drew most of its cues from the Nazi occupation of Europe in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII (and to a lesser extent the Japanese occupation of Pacific nations in the same period), with the Cardassians using concentration camps, forced labor, and {{sex slave}}ry on the native Bajorans and pillaging their art and cultural resources, while the Bajorans themselves had both LaResistance and LesCollaborateurs. However, the Cardassians withdraw right before the series mostly due to their own internal politics.** The situation in "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS04E18RulesOfEngagement Rules of Engagement]]" where Worf accidentally destroys a passenger ship while defending a convoy against Klingon raiders was inspired by the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_Flight_655 Iran Air Flight 655]] incident during the UsefulNotes/IranIraqWar.** Much of the Dominion War story arc is based on UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. The fall of Deep Space 9 in "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS05E26CallToArms Call to Arms]]" references US possessions falling to Japan, while "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS06E05FavorTheBold Favor the Bold]]" and "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS06E06SacrificeOfAngels Sacrifice of Angels]]" parallel D-Day in part. "[[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS07E08TheSiegeOfAR558 The Siege of AR-558]]" was primarily inspired by Guadalcanal, but director Winrich Kolbe also drew on his experiences in UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar, feeling the scenario was similar to Khe Sanh.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]* The developers of the ''VideoGame/FreeSpace 2'' mod ''VideoGame/BluePlanet: War in Heaven'' have stated that the war between the [[AntiHero United Earth Federation]] and the [[AntiVillain Galactic Terran-Vasudan Alliance]] is meant to be the UsefulNotes/VietnamWar in space. In both cases we have one side being far more powerful than the other but forced to fight a limited and conservative war due to political divisions and murky objectives while the much less powerful but more ideologically convinced side is simply trying to hold its own and ultimately push the other side out by costing them enough blood. Similarly to the Vietnam War, there is no clear-cut good guy.* The ''VideoGame/WingCommander'' series was conceived as a sci-fi version of World War II aircraft carrier operations in the Pacific Theatre (with some ''Film/TopGun'' mixed in).* The general plot of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance'' seems has some parallels with World War II, particularly in the roles of many of the countries. Daein/Germany is a bigoted, militaristic aggressor nation, Crimea/France is a cultured nation invaded by said aggressor state, Begnion/Britain is a powerful, aristocratic empire to whom Crimea/France appeals to for help and the Laguz/United States are isolationists who come to join the Allies when they realize Daein/Germany threaten them. To top it all off, the leader of the allied force is called Ike (although he's actually from the France stand-in). [[note]]Technically, Greil and Elena originally came from the Germany stand-in and emigrated to the United States stand-in, where they had Ike and Mist; later Greil moved with Ike and Mist to the France stand-in.[[/note]] The sequel didn't keep these parallels up; if anything, Daein in ''Radiant Dawn'' more closely resembled post-WW'''I''' Germany.* ''VideoGame/AceCombat'':** ''VideoGame/AceCombat5TheUnsungWar'' has the unique distinction of taking place during the Fantasy Conflict Counterpart of [[WorldWarIII a war which never actually happened]].** The eponymous conflict in ''VideoGame/AceCombatZeroTheBelkanWar'' is based on both UsefulNotes/WorldWarI and UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, with just a dash of the Yugoslav Wars thrown in for variety.* ''VideoGame/{{Gemfire}}'', by Creator/{{KOEI}}, is best described as ''Literature/RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms'' [[JustForFun/XMeetsY in a]] StandardFantasySetting [[JustForFun/XMeetsY version of the Wars of the Roses]]," down to the king being from House ''[[MeaningfulName Lankshire]]''. And Ishmeria being shaped like England and Wales (including the Isle of Man) and the king's bastard heading up House Tudoria.* You can't get any more obvious when your title is ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics: The War of the Lions,'' with even a black lion and white lion standing in for [[UsefulNotes/WarsOfTheRoses the red rose and white rose.]] And there's even a 2-for-1 special in that the major event that shaped the game's backstory was the Fifty Years' War, an obvious analogue of the real life Hundred Years' War.* ''VideoGame/TacticsOgre'', written by [[Creator/YasumiMatsuno the same mind]] behind ''Final Fantasy Tactics'', features the nation of Valeria torn apart between three ethnic groups after the last great unifier died. It's a huge analogue of UsefulNotes/TheYugoslavWars, even moreso given that the game originally released in 1995 when the wars were in full swing. It also qualifies as a SpaceColdWar, given that the conflict on Valeria is being influenced by agents from Xenobia (analagous to CIA operatives) and the Holy Lodis Empire is supporting one of the factions with a significant military presence (analogous to Soviet "advisers" propping up a local friendly government).* ''VideoGame/MountAndBlade'' mod ''[[http://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php/topic,300620.0.html The Red Wars]]'' is set in the 20th century equivalent of the original game[[note]]a realistic LowFantasy magic-free world closely inspired by historical HighMiddleAges[[/note]] and is inspired by World War 2 (with some World War 1 and Russian Civil War elements in it), three of the major factions involved being obvious expies of URSS, Nazi Germany, and Sweden/Finland.* ''VideoGame/PillarsOfEternity'':** Broken Stone War, War of Black Trees and really the whole relationship between Aedyr (and later, Dyrwood) and Glanfathans resembles both Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain and European colonization of North America.** War of Defiance, where now ''Free'' Palatinate of Dyrwood gained independence from Aedyr Empire, is UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution.** Saint's War is a more ambiguous example, but has some notable familiarities with UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar: agrarian, traditionalist Readceras and industrial, more liberal Dyrwood resemble the sides pretty well, though the reasons for war were different.* ''VideoGame/ValkyriaChronicles'':** The [[GreatOffscreenWar First Europan War]] appears to be based on UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, as it was started by the assassination of the crown prince of the [[TheEmpire East Europan Imperial Alliance]], featured the first use of {{tank|Goodness}}s, and became bogged down in trench warfare. However, with no equivalent to America in the setting, the trench warfare became so inconclusive that the Empire and the [[TheFederation Atlantic Federation]] basically gave up and signed a ceasefire.** The Second Europan War that forms the backdrop to the game is based on UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. Like the Entente and Central Powers of World War I, The Atlantic Federation and the Imperial Alliance were both unsatisfied with the postwar balance of power and began to rearm as the resumption of hostilities came to be seen as increasingly inevitable. Thus, a new continent-wide war breaks out some twenty years after the first. The Empire invades three of the Federation's border republics, an act of aggression mirroring Hitler's invasion of Poland in 1939, using new techniques of mechanized warfare and rapid advance to quickly overwhelm everything in its path. Emperor Maximilian takes the place of Adolf Hitler, a charismatic leader with ambitions of world domination who takes advantage of the climate of ethnic nationalism and racism that was allowed to fester during the interwar period. The Darcsen people take the place of the Jews and Roma, who are distrusted by people on all sides and find themselves subjected to ethnic cleansing and genocide as a scapegoat to justify the Empire's conquest. Finally, the ancient Valkyrur serve as a counterpart to Nazi Germany's idea of the superior Aryan race, and their investigation of Valkyrur sites and artifacts mirror the interest of high level Nazis in archaeology and the occult. Indeed the powers of the Valkyria and their ragnite lances take on the same strategic importance as weapons of mass destruction such as the atomic bomb did in World War II, with the major powers racing to obtain them first in order to gain an overwhelming advantage. The main thing for which there is not a direct comparison is that Gallia, which serves as a FantasyCounterpartCulture for Switzerland by its policy of armed neutrality, is invaded by the Empire for its ragnite, while in real life Nazi Germany left Switzerland alone.* The GameWithinAGame of ''VideoGame/TheWriterWillDoSomething'' is like this, though no one wants to admit it; creative director Josh insists on referring to an "early, self-consciously studied war-is-bad desert battle — the second major combat encounter — as 'Afghanistan' so indefatigably that a panicked PR flack made him undergo emergency deprogramming right before E3 last year, lest he slip and actually say such a thing out loud to the press."* ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'' has a fantasy ''postwar'' counterpart in the Cardassians, whose treaty with the Federation following the Dominion War reduced their military to a defensive organization of considerably smaller size, rather like what happened to Japan after World War II. The rest of the picture looks like post-invasion Iraq, with many former Cardassian Guard officers joining the True Way, a reactionary terrorist organization.** What little we see of Postwar Cardassian politics shows that there are some nostalgic movements in the government that wish that the defense force were allowed to be expanded to a full military force again. Coupled with said politician wishing to have a particular blend of Kanar that was made on Bajor during the occupation and that it's rare because most Bajorans see it as a sign of the occupation, it can be a nice blend of Postwar Iraq, Japan, and WWI Germany.** The introduction of Carrier ships into the game has led to many comparisons to WWII, especially with their growing prominence pushing out previously battle ship style capitol ships.[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]* The ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' episode [[Recap/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagicS1E21OverABarrel "Over a Barrel"]] deals with a scenario much like early America's [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Indian_Wars Indian Wars]], settlers taking over the natives' ancestral land for their own purposes, without native consent, which in turn cranks off the natives. Due to [[SlidingScaleOfCynicismVersusIdealism the nature of the show,]] things get resolved before they...escalate too far. Specifically, it's a LighterAndSofter fantasy version of the Black Hills conflict, wherein the Lakota regarded the area as Sacred Ground (in the episode, a Buffalo Stampede Trail) whereas the settlers found a big mess of precious minerals (in the episode, the only place a farm could be planted).[[/folder]]----